The 65-year-old Ocean's Eleven star is said to be planning the restaurant in the Provençal village of Cotignac, near the Domaine du Canadel estate outside Brignoles where he lives with human rights lawyer Amal Clooney, and their nine-year-old twins Ella and Alexander.
The family have cited privacy, particularly protections surrounding children, as one of the attractions of living in France.
"I was worried about raising our kids in LA, in the culture of Hollywood. I felt like they were never going to get a fair shake at life. France – they kind of don't give a s*** about fame", Clooney told Esquire.
Cotignac mayor Jean-Pierre Véran has confirmed the star's involvement in the restaurant project, although The Times reported no formal plans had yet been submitted and the actor's name did not appear on municipal paperwork.
The Clooneys officially became French citizens in December 2025, with their naturalisation recorded in France's Journal Officiel.
The planned restaurant brings together their French home life and longstanding connection to Italy.
The actor has owned Villa Oleandra on Lake Como since 2002 and has spent more than two decades regularly living in Italy.
The couple married in 2014 in Venice, the Italian city with which Clooney has maintained a particularly close association throughout his career.
That relationship was celebrated again last month when he returned to the Venice International Film Festival to receive its Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement.
Accepting the honour, he said: "I've had so many extraordinary moments in Venice. This festival is without question my favourite and to be given the Golden Lion is a tremendous honour. It also probably means I'm old, but I'll take it".
The award recognised a film and television career spanning more than four decades.
Clooney first became an international star playing Dr Doug Ross in ER before becoming one of Hollywood's most bankable leading men through films including Ocean's Eleven, Out of Sight, Michael Clayton, Up in the Air and The Descendants.
His most recent major screen role was in Noah Baumbach's Jay Kelly, alongside Adam Sandler and Laura Dern. The film premiered at Venice in 2025, with George playing an ageing Hollywood star confronting his life and career.
